ESB
The Defiant Brewing Company

 

poured a hazy golden orange hue, the color of a dried apricot. Medium sized bubbles form a half finger high off white head.

The nose is a hop blast at first, with a nice sweet malty back bone. Citrus, pine mingle with some caramel. After inhaling deeper I noticed some fruitiness, specifically peach and strawberry notes.

Very bitter up front but then comes some of the sweet fruitiness. It's very soft, peach, berry, but it balances out the hop bitterness very nicely.

Velvety smooth mouthfeel , carbonation that's barely noticble. As expected the finish is dry.

Over all a great refreshing beer

Pours a very foggy orange/brown/amber. No head. Just a slight foam thing. Nice perfumed flavor profile with a biting citric edge. Firmly defined bitter tone. Even though it's pretty strong, I want to say it s well balanced in its strong bitterness. Nice carbonation and a well bodied liquid feel. Extremely drinkable. Be prepared to order another after 3 minutes.

Blitheringidiot got me a growler of this from the brewery. Apparently, this was filled from the fermenter. Well, this explains flaws in the beer. Despite those flaws, I have to say this beer has a lot of potential.

The good: nutty taste. I think I got some biscuit notes. It has a classic copper color that all of the superior ESBs, in my experience, share. Hops on the nose. I think some Cascade poked out at one point. Both malt and hops are good.

The bad: poor carbonation. Affected head and mouthfeel.

Overall verdict: A lot of promise. I wish them well. I'm very picky about this style.

This is an exceptional beer. It pours a dark honey color. Aroma is lightly hoppy, Flavor is delicately balanced, but not mild in any way! Fruity, a little sweet, and dryly hoppy. Awesome beer, soft on the palate. I will be looking out for this brewery!

Honey brown color, and crystal clear with a semi-thick off white head. Hops heads will rejoice when they smell this beer. Huge hoppy nose, sweet, floral, and a little orange. Not as big in the taste as the nose, but beautifully balanced. Again, some nice hops with floral and sweet notes to it, a tiny bit of grapefruit. Finishes as lovely and clean as any hopped up brew I've ever had.

9/26/2006 $7.50 Growler 6.90%

Appearance:

Pours a clear brown with ruby highlights that is rimmed by a thin film of tan foamy head.

Aroma:

Roasted malts with a nutty aroma, hints of floral hops and a touch of ripe figs.

Taste/Mouthfeel:

Smooth, but slightly weak mouthfeel followed by a robust nuttiness that dominates until the end, when a bitter hop presence appears leading to a dry finish.